Assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn initially promised a decision in spring 2013. That didn't happen and now he's not saying when he will take action.

"The process takes a long time," Washburn told The Cape Cod Times. "I haven't
seen all the evidence yet so I can't prejudge it."

The application -- the tribe's first -- was filed in August 2007 but the process
slowed as the tribe changed gaming sites, changed gaming partners and changed
leadership. The draft environmental
impact statement wasn't published until November 2013.

The next step for the BIA would be the final environmental impact statement. That's usually followed by a record of decision and then the actual placing of the land in trust.

The tribe's main hurdle is the U.S. Supreme Court
decision in Carcieri v.
Salazar. The ruling restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934.